The Best Childcare For A Special Needs Child

Friday, June 29, 2018

This post is sponsored by Kindercare.

This last school year was a big one for our family. I went from having two kids at home full time to sending both kids off to school each day. I saw my kids grow in ways that I never thought were possible, like my shy and timid five-year-old become a brave rough and tumble boy just like his friends. I watched our physically disabled daughter go from not being able to sit unsupported to full on sitting, crawling, pulling to stand, and walking without support in a walker. When I saw the way that these teachers cared deeply for the overall development of my children, it made me realize that there is a wide variety of adults out there that are willing to help, nurture, and encourage my children.

The only downside to this school year was that it was only 2 1/2 hours a day for each of my kids. This was fine most days, but there were times when I needed to be out of town for work, or I had meetings with brands, and all of a sudden it seemed like my child care options were very small. Leaving our children is an even bigger concern for us because of Em and her physical disabilities, and I just worry about her well being so much whenever I have to leave her anywhere.

We toured our local Kindercare last week and I was blown away by how accommodating and inclusive they were to kids of all abilities. When we got there I explained how Em couldn't walk and if she would be able to receive care there, and they explained to me that Kindercare has an Inclusion Services Team whose job is to ensure that all Kindercare classrooms are inclusive environments where every child feels a sense of belonging. That team also does support centers in identifying additional services for children when needed.

Another important detail to me were the small class sizes, and that all the teachers and aids had specified certifications and degrees, making them all that more qualified to care for my children. When we were getting our tour I literally turned to the lady showing us around and said, "Daycare of any kind used to be such a scary thing for us, but I honestly feel like I could send my kids here and know that they would be well cared for and supported."

The icing on the cake was when we went out to the playground and they had a smooth transition from the concrete to the play structure, meaning Em could easily access the entire outdoor play area in her walker with ease.

5 comments

As a former one-on-one turned special education teacher, I think it’s so important to have devoted and compassionate professionals working with our children. There are bad apples out there as far as academic faculty and staff. So we should do our best to praise and support the good apples like you did in this post. I’m happy your babies had an awesome school year.

Yes! I feel like there are amazing special education teachers... and then not so good ones, which tend to give the ones who are good a bad wrap. It always feels like such a blessing when the right people fall into our lives!